Holiday mobile costs fall

It is now cheaper to use your mobile phone when travelling abroad in the European Union after new maximum  roaming charges came into force on Sunday (1 July).

Both call and text charges have been cut and for the first time the amount consumers can be charged for surfing the mobile web on their smartphones and tablet computers is also being capped.

The new rules mean that phone companies can charge no more than 70 cents (58p) per megabyte of data, plus VAT. 

This will then fall to 45 cents in 2013 and 20 cents  in summer 2014.

Although these price cuts will only apply to Europe, people travelling outside Europe will for the first time receive warning alerts once their monthly mobile internet bill approaches 50 Euros (£41).

Call and text costs

The cost per minute of making a call in the European Union has  fallen from 35 to 29 cents (24p), while the cost of receiving a call is down from 11 to 8 cents (7p).

Text messages are also cheaper, falling from 11 cents to 9 cents (7p).

Costs will continue to fall over the next two years so that by the summer of 2014 the maximum cost for making a call will be 19 cents , while the maximum cost for receiving a call and sending a text will be 5 cents  and 6 cents  respectively.

The European Union has also agreed that from summer 2014 consumers will be able to choose a different mobile operator abroad from the one they use at home.

Roaming rates

Ofcom has continually pushed for a better deal for consumers who use their mobile phones abroad.

We have worked closely with the Government and regulators in Europe on how best to deal with the issue of high international roaming prices.

Using your mobile abroad is one of the main ways consumers can run up an unexpectedly high bill

Check out our online advice on how to avoid ‘bill shock’, which includes advice on using your mobile abroad.

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